1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to accessories for domestic animals, and more particularly to an ear canal covering that protects against such things as foxtails and burrs lodging in the animals' ears.
2. Background Information
The term "foxtail" refers to any of several grasses with spikes that resemble small brushes. It is sometimes used to refer to the individual spikes too. Each spike houses a seed that nature has outfitted with barbs. The barbs stick to passersby and that carries the seed away to germinate elsewhere.
Dog owners know foxtails well. It only takes a short exercise session in a grassy field for a dog to carry away its share. The foxtails lodge painfully in the dog's paws, nostrils, and ear canals. So, the owner must remain alert for their presence and remove them promptly.
Those lodging in the ear canals are particularly troublesome. They remain less visible while irritating a very sensitive region. Dog attempts to scratch them free only lodge them deeper. The dog is left whining in pain and so the owner must patiently calm the dog while carefully inserting a tweezers down the ear canal far enough to remove the offending foxtail.
Although some sort of protective dog garment might alleviate the problem, existing ear coverings such as the garment for long-eared dogs described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,136,115 are not entirely effective. They are designed to protect the pinnae of long-eared dogs from mud, burrs, and so forth. The pinnae are just the projecting cartilaginous portions of the external ears. Foxtails can still find their way into the ear canals.
In addition, many dogs seem to object to wearing such a garment. They paw it off or hook it on a nearby object and tear it off. So dog owners need an effective way to protect against such things as foxtails lodging in their dogs' ears.